


My Flame God Boyfriend

by honeypressed



Category: NCT (Band), Stray Kids (Band), Weak Hero (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Blood, Blood and Injury, Blood and Violence, Boys in Skirts, Established Relationship, Falling In Love, Feelings Realization, Fights, Found Family, Gangs, Getting to Know Each Other, M/M, Minor Injuries, Non-Graphic Violence, Strangers to Lovers, Team as Family, Tenderness, Violence, gang fights, high-tension but it's the whole fic, i HA, school gangs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:02:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27391663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honeypressed/pseuds/honeypressed
Summary: Have you heard?The rumours whisper,Have you heard that Im Jinyoung of Nokga High has been taken down by the Songdaemun Union?Felix has. And that one favour of Minho asking him to find their school's strongest fighter boils down to this moment, standing tall and proud and afighter.Have you heard,The rumours go after that,Have you heard of Bang Chan's pet, the one that learned how to fight?
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Felix, Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know, Minor Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin - Relationship, Minor Kim Seungmin/Yang Jeongin | I.N - Relationship
Comments: 13
Kudos: 188
Collections: STRAY KIDS MV FICFEST





	My Flame God Boyfriend

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [SKZ MV FICFEST](https://twitter.com/skzmvfest/); Inspired by Stray Kids' [Easy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZSv3aMGg5Q/) M/V.
> 
> hi hello!!!!!! this was supposed to be a lighthearted and sexy school crime gang au but Feelings got involved, as it always does for me, and so we ended with this shitstorm of a piece. i hope you enjoy it, regardless!! would like to mention another source of inspiration which is the 'weak hero' webtoon and where i got the whole school gang thing from since it fit in so nicely with skz's easy mv. 
> 
> im kinda out of my mind editing this so. any questions, please ask below, i will clarify <3 like which schools the characters go to or any trivia questions!! 
> 
> warnings: mentions of dogs as nicknames (ex. rottweiler), non-graphic violence, fighting, mentions of blood and injury
> 
> thank you to cal (@[lavendergloss](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lavendergloss/) on ao3) for beta-ing for me, i love you!!!! as always, please enjoy~

_north, south, east, west_

_i will crush them all_

* * *

The rumours had been circulating for weeks already. Felix had tried his best to keep himself away from these rumours because he simply isn’t interested in the fights between the various gangs, but even he isn’t spared from these rumours. There are many, many rumours, but the one constant seemed to be this — 

_Im Jinyoung, the Half of the Sun… they say the Union is after him_.

In the hours when he wasn’t occupied with school, homework, or student council duties, Felix had thought about what that could mean.

The Songdaemun Union was simply a coalition formed by the leading gangs of four high schools with Hwanggeum High at the centre, and the Death Angel as the leader of the union. Felix doesn’t know the real name of the Death Angel, but he does know that she is ruthless, and even listening to the stories of her fighting sends chills down his spine. The Death Angel had also extended her reach into the surrounding business district, offering access to the huge markets that were the four schools in return for loyalty.

If the Union was after one of their own members, Im Jinyoung that was leading Dokga High, Felix doesn’t dare to think about _why_ Im Jinyoung was being targeted. Surely the other members of the Union wouldn’t want to attack their own member… or would they? 

Felix absentmindedly opens the windows of the student council office to let some air in and goes through the members of the Union in his head.

Hwanggeum High. The centre of the Union, and where the Death Angel is.

Dokga High. Notorious for having the most ruthless fighters, but also fiercely loyal; led by Im Jinyoung, though not for much longer if the rumours stood true.

Cheolsa High. Most loyal to the Union, they acted on the Death Angel's orders without a question, even if it meant war. The head of this school, Shin Ryujin, wasn’t someone most people would like to cross, and even without fighting often she had placed fourth on the shuttle patch rankings.

Garue High. Led by Seo Changbin, the One-Hit God, but strangely enough for a school that was involved in the Union, fought very little and actually encouraged studying.

There were only two schools in the district that weren’t part of the Union — his own school, Noye High, and their neighbouring school, Jangnan High. Felix knows for a fact that after Chan took over as head three years ago, he hadn’t been challenged by any newcomers, and also that he had been personally approached by the Death Angel and refused to join the Union even after that.

That story had cemented Chan as someone either very brave or very brazen in Felix’s mind; that, in addition to that he found Chan rather… cute, had meant he developed a soft spot for the strongest fighter in their school who probably didn’t even know who he was.

Felix shakes the thoughts out of his mind as he sits down at his desk and pulls out some files that he’s meant to be looking over. If he wants to make it in time for evening cram school, he had better look over the files in the next hour and come to a decision about the budget the student council was supposed to be allocating for some upcoming events.

There is maybe fifteen minutes of quiet as Felix works through the papers before the door opens, and he doesn’t even need to look up to know who has entered the student council office.

“Hey, did you hear? The head of Dokga High has been taken down.” 

Felix pauses in shuffling through the stacks of papers listing the school budget for the upcoming festivals and looks up at his vice president instead. “The head of Dokga High? Im Jinyoung got taken down? That’s…”

“Unbelievable, I know,” Minho says, taking a seat in front of Felix’s desk, orange hair messy and outer school shirt left unbuttoned. “But apparently it’s true that he’s been taken down, and so he’s going to be replaced by the Guardian Rottweiler. I can’t imagine what the Union has done to Im Jinyoung for him to be taken down by the head herself.”

Felix grimaces, looks back down at the papers. “Let’s not talk about the Death Angel, it gives me chills everytime. And did you say the Guardian Rottweiler is the head of Dokga High now? That’s Hwang Hyunjin, isn’t it?”

Minho nods. “It is. He’s your age, Pres, and a lot more vicious than you are.” 

“I’m not involved in fights, of course I’m not,” Felix says, then squints at Minho. “Is there… something you want to talk to me about? You usually don’t bring up the topic of the Union unless you’re talking about Han Jisung.”

“I do _not_ talk about Han Jisung,” Minho says immediately. “But — well, kind of. He asked me if our school would be interested in forming an Alliance with Jangnan High to protect ourselves because there is intel that the Union might be coming after us… after Bang Chan, really.”

Felix pauses at that. “The Union is interested in the head of our school?” 

“Yeah. You know Chan didn’t agree to join the Union and he said he never would, so basically he’s been blacklisted by the Union. It was all just a matter of time of when they would strike… and now that the only school that was opposed to attacking us — Im Jinyoung of Dokga High — has been replaced, I think the Union is going to strike soon.”

Minho’s intel has never been wrong in the two years they have known each other, and if Minho is telling him all about this, it must mean that he’s worried. Forming an alliance with Jangnan High would certainly give their own school more protection, but Felix doesn’t think Chan would ever form an alliance with any of the other schools. Not with how he had kept to himself all this while.

“I don’t know what I can do,” Felix admits, “if the Union decides to attack…” 

“Go and talk to Bang Chan, please,” Minho says, standing up and pressing his palms flat against Felix’s desk. “He doesn’t listen to anyone, but he might listen if the student council president asks him for help. He wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt, I’m sure. Please… just ask him to consider it.”

“You want me to ask The Other God to join an Alliance with Jangnan High, Han Jisung’s school, to protect us from the Union?” Felix asks skeptically. “How do you even know Jangnan High will really have our back?”

“Jangnan High isn’t involved in the Union, remember?” Minho says, “And I think I can trust my boyfriend.”

“Oh Han Jisung is your _boyfriend,_ is he?” 

“Ah - _shut up_ , Pres! Just - just go and ask Bang Chan for help!”

“What makes you think he’s going to listen to me? He doesn’t even _know_ me — ”

“Rubbish,” Minho dismisses. “He knows who you are, and a lot I think.”

“ _What do you mean by that_ ?!” Felix says, and grips the papers in his head a little too tightly. “I have never so much as _talked_ to Bang Chan-ssi, and it’s going to stay that way if I have anything to say about it.”

“I’ll take care of the budget balancing for you if you talk to Bang Chan,” Minho offers. “I know how much you hate balancing the budget because you’re too nice. I, on the other hand, have no qualms about cutting all the funds for the football club. They get too much funding from the school, and we all know why.”

“… You’re driving a hard bargain here,” Felix says, looking back down at the slightly crumpled papers in his hands.

“And I’ll call for and handle the budget meeting too,” Minho says, pressing his offer a little more.

“You’re really insistent on us forming an alliance with Jangnan High.” 

“I want our school to be _safe_.” 

“Then… fine. I’ll go and find Bang Chan-ssi and talk to him about this. Don’t expect any results, though.”

“Thank you!” Minho says, beaming and leaning over to wrangle Felix’s hands and consequently crumpling the papers even more. “I’ll even treat you to _bingsu_ , Pres — no, wait, I’ll treat you to _bingsu_ only _if_ you get Bang Chan-ssi to agree to meet Jisungie.”

“So it’s Jisungie now, huh?” Felix says, and tries not to laugh at Minho’s suddenly flushed face. “I’ll try my best, it’s for the safety of our students, right?”

Minho nods at that, expression settling into something serious. “As fast as you can, Pres. I don’t know how long the Union will wait to act before starting shit with our students, so I hope it all goes well.” 

Felix reads the lines of worry at the corner of Minho’s mouth and feels something unsettling deep in his guts. Tries not to think about last year when the fighters at Cheolsa High decided to harass their students, and the consequences of that fight; he thinks about how he had arrived at the scene to find Chan standing amongst unconscious bodies lying around him, stony-faced and battered, but _standing victorious_. Something else curls high in his throat; something like pride.

“Do you happen to know where I can find Bang Chan-ssi?” 

* * *

As it turns out, trying to find Bang Chan is a lot harder than Felix can predict. Everyone knows what class Chan is in; Class 3-3, his seat is right at the back of the class near the window but the thing is that Chan is _never in class_.

“He turns up sometimes for musical theory,” Jangjun offers when Felix starts asking some people of Class 3-3. “But it’s all a wild card, really. I can text him for you if you want, but it’s all up to how he feels. I heard he likes to frequent the basement lounges but no one’s really been there in ages.” 

Felix doesn’t really like basements, for all intents and purposes. He’s been playing too many horror games lately to even think about visiting the school basement, so he files that option to the back of his mind as a last resort. 

“Thank you,” Felix says anyway, “you’ve been of great help.”

  
“Our Pres is so nice,” Jangjun says instead, and actually means it. Felix knows this because while other people suck up to him in order to gain something, Jangjun has never asked for that. “I’ll help you relay the message if I see that bastard, don’t worry. The head of our school and he doesn’t even show up often…” 

_If I were the head of a school and the Union was after me I would skip class too,_ Felix thinks, but keeps that thought to himself. He’s sure Chan would be able to hold his ground in a fight though… come to think of it, what was Chan’s ranking in the shuttle patch arena?

[ _vice pres hyung_ ]

[ _21:20_ ] hey hyung

[ _21:20_ ] do you have access to shuttle patch rankings

[ _21:20_ ] bc i don’t

[ _21:25_ ] now why does our pres want shuttle patch rankings

[ _21:25_ ] i thought pres “didn't fight”

[ _21:26_ ] i was curious

[ _21:26_ ] what’s chan-ssi’s ranking

[ _21:26_ ] well well well 

[ _21:28_ ] [ _vice pres hyung sent you a photo_ ]

[ _21:29_ ] as you can see

[ _21:29_ ] your beloved head of school is #11

[ _21:30_ ] thank u 

[ _21:30_ ] it’s lower than i expected?

[ _21:30_ ] yeah, well he doesn’t seek out fights

[ _21:30_ ] that’s true

[ _21:30_ ] it’s expected death angel would be #1

[ _21:31_ ] but why is your bf ranked #7 

[ _21:32_ ] the shuttle patch rankings are kind of eh

[ _21:32_ ] i don’t really know the logistics behind it

[ _21:32_ ] and i have a friend who could explain it better

[ _21:32_ ] i thought you’d know about it 

[ _21:32_ ] since your bf is on the shuttle patch ranking

[ _21:32_ ] but basically SPR is decided on a lot of fighting statistics

[ _21:32_ ] it’s not just about who will win

[ _21:33_ ] but a lot of other factors like duration and power too

[ _21:33_ ] jisungie is ranked #7 bc he hasn’t been fighting lately

[ _21:34_ ] and in general when he fights he just k.o.s the opponent

[ _21:34_ ] you don’t really go up rankings that way

[ _21:35_ ] that’s already a very detailed explanation

[ _21:35_ ] thank you~~

[ _21:35_ ] [ _you sent a sticker_ ]

[ _21:35_ ] a sunbae told me where he’s most likely to be

[ _21:36_ ] so i’ll try and find him soon

[ _21:36_ ] thank you lixie 

[ _21:36_ ] it’ll be worth it after you find him

[ _21:36_ ] and get him to agree

[ _21:37_ ] but one thing at a time

And one thing at a time indeed, because Felix, despite his best efforts, does _not_ find Bang Chan for the remainder of the week. In between his duties to the student council, his want to keep his grades up, and the fact that Chan is always skipping class or just doesn’t come to school at all, it's close to two weeks before he even so much as manages to catch a _glimpse_ of Bang Chan.

Felix is feeling the pressure to find Bang Chan now more than ever. The students are getting anxious as Union students are beginning to show up in what is supposed to be Noye High’s territory, and even Minho is getting antsy, inquiring into whether he's found Bang Chan with the absence of his usual nonchalant attitude. 

Taking a leaf out of Bang Chan's books, Felix skips an ethics class on a Friday afternoon and takes a scour around the school. 

Already, he can hear the students whispering. _Why is Pres skipping class? Who does he think he is? He can't even take care of himself, I bet I can take him down myself. Right? He looks so weak_

"If you want a fight so badly come at me, why don't you?" Felix says loudly up into the stairwell where some of the more notorious fighters have gathered to smoke. "Watch your mouth, fuckers." 

Felix leaves before any of them can make a retort, since he wasn’t going up to the rooftop anyway. If his sources — source, would be a better word, since he only asked Jangjun — are right, Bang Chan wouldn’t be on the rooftop; he would be in the basement. 

Steeling himself to go into the basement, Felix takes the staircase that is furthest away from all the classrooms, hidden away near to the bathrooms. This staircase will take him to the part of the basement where there are unused classrooms — he could have taken the main staircase down, but then he would have to walk through the mazes of hallways in the basement, and he would rather not do that.

It doesn’t take him long at all to find Chan. The only room in the basement that has the lights on and door ajar is Class 0-5, and he knocks softly on the door, hopes that it’s loud enough for the person inside to hear him. 

The door swings open almost immediately — and Chan stands in the threshold. 

A second passes. Then another. “Who told you to find me here?” 

“I - Jangjun-sunbaenim,” Felix says, and a strange feeling settles over him like a veil. Here he is, standing in front of the strongest fighter in the school, and he… doesn’t feel fear. “He told me that I would be able to find you here eventually.”

There’s a slight pause where Chan eyes him, and Felix meets his gaze steadily. Chan had flagrantly disobeyed school policy by wearing a black undershirt underneath his school shirt, and the silver bracelets on his wrists jangle as he runs a hand through his hair, dyed pitch black. Felix tears his eyes away from the action, hoping that he hasn’t been caught.

“He was right, and you found me. What does the Student Council President want with me?”

“I… you heard that the head of Nokga High was taken down, right? The Half of the Sun.”

“I do. What does that have to do with us?” 

“There is intel that the Union will come after you next, and if they come after us…” 

“Everyone in Noye High will be attacked too,” Chan finishes, and he looks a little pained. “I never meant to take over our school, I really didn’t.”

“Better you than the Red Sniper,” Felix blurts out, referring to the previous head of Noye High before Chan took over. “I mean — I wasn’t here when the Red Sniper was around, but from what I’ve heard, you’re better so…”

“Our Pres is really nice, huh,” Chan says, and he gives a little smile this time too. It softens his face and Felix can’t help but smile in return. “Is that all you came to tell me? That was a lot of effort just to tell me the Half of the Sun is defeated.”

“Oh. No — the head of Jangnan High, do you know him?” 

“The Fist of God?”

“Yeah. He wants to form an alliance between our schools.” 

Chan doesn’t say anything, but his gaze hardens and his lips press together. 

Worried, Felix rushes to add more to what he had said. “Like - Han Jisung said that - or, well, his boyfriend told me that since Nokga High is being replaced, they no longer object to our school being attacked by the Union. It could be really dangerous for our students as well as Jangnan High since they’re quite close to us, so Han Jisung wants to form an alliance between us.” Felix pauses abruptly, taking a breath. He goes to speak again, wants to mention something else, but then Chan opens his mouth.

“I know that,” Chan murmurs, and now there is a clouded look in his eyes. “I have heard of that, and I know it’s coming.” 

Felix watches Chan; there is the sudden urge to reach out and - do _something_ \- offer comfort - Chan looks so _tense_. Instead, he meets Chan’s eyes and relaxes his shoulders, hopes that this little action helps.

“I will need to meet Han Jisung,” Chan finally says after a few moments. “I can’t form an alliance with someone I have never met.”

Something like relief and worry breaks all over in Felix’s chest in several rapid waves. “I — yes. Thank you. I can ask Minho-hyung to find Jisung-ssi and help you set up a meeting if you want. Or get his number for you, anything works.” 

Chan cocks his head, clouded look gone and replaced with what looks like curiosity. “I should be the one thanking you, Felix-ssi. I didn’t know what to do all this while, and you’ve just given me a good chance to protect our school, so thank you.” 

“It’s fine!” Felix says, and hopes Chan doesn’t notice both the slight crack of his voice and the redness of his ears. _How embarrassing it would be,_ Felix thinks, walking back up to the classroom floors with Chan beside him, _if I talked to him once and I got a crush on him._

“You can call me hyung,” Chan says abruptly when Felix turns to go to his next class. “You don’t need to be so formal.” 

Felix — feels his heart thump and his tongue ties itself all at once. “Sure,” He croaks out, hoping he doesn’t look like a fool in front of this man that could probably lift him with one arm, “sure - hyung. I’ll, uh, see you around! Yeah - see you!” He dashes away to class, leaving Chan behind, looking slightly befuddled. 

But there is fondness in his gaze.

(he’s thinking about the cute freshman with chubby cheeks that asked him where the classroom for maths was, and a small smile comes to his mouth. then — abruptly, he remembers the fights and the wounds of that same year, and his smile drops again. 

he needs to find han jisung.)

* * *

“You got Chan to agree,” Minho breathes out that evening in cram school, “oh my _god,_ you’re amazing! I really didn’t know if he would say yes, but - oh, I have to tell Jisungie about this, he won’t believe it — ” 

“Where did you go before cram school?” Felix interrupts, completely distracted by what Minho is wearing. “Did you go to the pc cafe?” 

“Oh, yeah, we did,” Minho replies absentmindedly, fingers flying across his phone. “But some kids from Cheolsa High came to mess with the other people in the cafe so we got involved… it’s not even their territory, I don’t know why they came here.”

“‘We’?” Felix questions, “you were with someone? And you got into a fight? Are you hurt?” 

Minho waves a hand, stowing his phone away and bringing his notebooks out instead as the teacher walks into the classroom. “I was with Jisungie at the pc cafe, and no, I’m not hurt. I changed into shorts because I spilled coke on my pants when those fuckers from Cheolsa High came to mess with us.”

Felix snickers, but Minho can’t reply apart from a glare as the teacher starts talking, bringing up presentation slides on something about immunity. 

Cram class always feels like it passes too fast, and once it’s almost over Felix turns to Minho, wants to ask if they should walk back together, but Minho is already staring at his phone, intensely concentrated and typing rapidly away at his phone. 

“Lee Minho, you should know better than to use your phone in class,” The teacher snaps, looking in their direction. 

Minho looks up at once, a buttery smile playing on his face. “Oh, I’m so sorry, seonsaengnim, but you understand right? The school directors always ask so much from the student council, and I have to keep working so late into the night…” He trails off and ends it with an even brighter smile, and Felixi watches with a resigned sigh as the teachers once again fall to Minho’s charm.

Felix waits impatiently for class to end — and for Minho to finish typing whatever it is on his phone — before they stand up and walk out of class. He hasn’t even opened his mouth yet, but Minho pulls him into a corner of the hallway and shoves his phone screen in front of Felix’s face. 

“Read it,” Minho says tersely, lines set into his face. 

Slightly confused, Felix takes his phone and reads through the chat on it. 

[ _jangnan namching_ ]

[ _20:07_ ] you want to meet chan now?

[ _20:07_ ] i don’t think that’s a good idea

[ _20:08_ ] too late <3

[ _20:08_ ] i found the cram school he goes to

[ _20:09_ ] and my intel found his number for me

[ _20:09_ ] we’re meeting in the car park there

[ _20:10_ ] han jisung i’m going to hurt you

[ _20:10_ ] and i’m coming to meet you 

[ _20:10_ ] don’t you dare start anything without me

“Oh no,” Felix says, tearing his eyes away from the screen and trying to contain the rising panic in his voice. “Oh no — ”

“No time for that,” Minho clips out, taking Felix by the wrist and dragging them out of the building and out into the streets, banking a sharp left when they usually would have gone straight. “We have to get to Chan-ssi’s cram school before Jisungie. Who knows what they’re up to.” 

As they run through the crowded streets, Felix can’t help but wonder _why_ is it that they’re so worried — didn’t they _want_ Chan and Jisung to meet and form an alliance? Perhaps it was because they were both ranked fighters, amongst the best on the shuttle patch rankings, and most of the meetings between these fighters would end up in a fight with the shuttle patch rankings changing the day after. 

_Is Chan stronger than Jisung? What if he loses…_ The thoughts settle dark and heavy at the bottom of his stomach and Felix quickens his footsteps, slamming against the gravel of the pavement and adding to the noise of Songdaemun. 

Felix doesn’t know where Chan’s cram school is, or that he even _goes_ to one, but it seems that Minho knows where it is, guiding them through the different streets and districts until they come to a halt in front of a nondescript building with just a small sign next to the door indicating that it was a cram school. It’s the cram school that the students from their school go to if they don’t get into the main one, Felix recognises, so perhaps that’s why he didn’t know Chan came to this one.

“How to get to the car park,” Minho murmurs under his breath as they stand in front of the cram school, still winded from running all the way here. “Do we just walk in and ask to go down…?” 

“Student council privilege,” Felix says, voice thin from running. “I can go in and tell them I'm the president and they’ll let us into the building without questions. We can go down to the car park after that.” 

“Okay, okay,” Minho says, just barely out of breath. “Do we look presentable?” 

Felix glances down at Minho’s clothes. “You’re wearing a loose tie, and your shirt is tucked into skintight shorts. You’re nowhere near decent but it’ll have to do.” 

“My pants are _dirty_ ,” Minho whines.

“Whine to your boyfriend, not me,” Felix says, running a hand through his hair and trying to make himself look like the student council president. “We have to get in, come _on_.” 

Adjusting their ties, they walk in through the doors and to the reception area of the cram school, smiling politely and looking as best as they could, sweaty and crumpled — and in Minho’s case, indecently dressed. 

“Hello, I’m the student council president,” Felix says, before the receptionist can say anything. “I just have some papers to drop off here today, you don’t mind that, do you?” 

“Yeah, the teachers gave us some last minute papers that we need to distribute,” Minho chimes in, easily following the fib Felix is telling. “We know it’s a bit inconvenient since it’s past the usual teaching hours, but we won’t be here for long.”

“You can close up ahead too,” Felix offers, their usual two-on-one tactic now firmly in play. “We can leave by the back alleyways and you won’t need to bother at all. It’s really just some papers, so we don’t want to bother you by making you stay behind.” 

“Oh — sure,” The receptionist says, blinking rapidly to process all the information. “Yes, please go ahead — I know you’re the student council president.” 

“Thank you!” Felix says brightly, and walks behind Minho, blocking the receptionist’s view. 

“Where’s the car park,” Minho hisses, now pulling the hems of his shorts down. “God, the one day I should be wearing something decent!” 

“Last time you got into a fight wearing a skirt, I don’t see the issue here,” Felix says under his breath, and pulls Minho along to the elevator. “I think the car park should be downstairs, so we should go down.”

“I saw the entrance to the car park from beside the building,” Minho says, now abruptly remembering the sign posts when they were standing outside the cram school. “And no elevators, Lixie. Can’t risk getting ourselves caught clearly on cameras.” 

“That’s right,” Felix says, and then they’re heading towards the staircase, pushing open the door to get to it. “The light switch,” He murmurs, eyes flickering towards a switch next to the door, “and not any cameras that I can see. We should be fine.” 

“Wouldn’t want the cameras to catch the president and vice-president at the scene of a possible crime,” Minho says, and then flips the switch off. “C’mon, let’s see if they’re downstairs.” 

A tense silence settles between them as they descend the four flights of stairs, and it grows that much thicker when they realise the lights for the hallway leading to the car park has been switched off. They don’t need to exchange a look between them to realise that either Jisung or Chan had already arrived — or perhaps, even _both_. Taking a shaky breath, Felix leads the way, fumbling around in the dark for the doorknob, wrenching the door open — 

To find Han Jisung squatting down in the middle of the empty car park, fiddling with his phone and bored. 

It’s not like he’s difficult to spot — his hair is a striking blonde and seems like it hadn’t been dyed in a while, not with the two inches of black root growing out. His black undershirt contrasts more sharply against the blue of his school shirt, and he looks like he doesn’t have a care in the world.

“Yah!” Minho barks immediately, taking large strides towards Jisung, “What were you thinking, you idiot? You can’t just ask to meet the head of another school so easily — you don’t even know Chan! And he just agreed _today,_ you know you should have waited — ”

“I couldn’t wait anymore,” Jisung says tersely, standing up and easily taking Minho into his arms. “Once I knew Chan-ssi wanted to talk — I had to talk.” 

Minho stiffens. “What do you mean?” 

“Jeongin told me those students that we fought this afternoon — they weren’t just bullies. They were sent by the Union to scout on the area, but they weren’t supposed to get into a fight with us. If they’re scouting the area — ”  
  


“— It means they’re getting ready to fight,” Minho breathes out. “Oh, my god — that’s not good.”  
  


“Where’s Chan?” Felix pipes up, coming to stand beside Minho, slightly intimidated by Han Jisung, as much as he can be intimidated by someone who stands below his eye-level. “Minho-hyung said he was coming…”

“I texted him half an hour ago, and he said to meet here, in the car park. He’s running a bit late, but apparently he has something to take care of before he comes here,” Jisung answers, and then looks around Minho to get a better view of Felix. “You’re Pres Lee Felix-ssi, aren’t you?” 

“Um - yes.” 

Jisung smiles. “It’s nice to meet you. Minho talks very highly of you, and I suppose you’ve been putting up with his bullshit. Thank you for taking care of Noye High on the surface — you’ve made Chan-ssi’s life easier, I’m sure.” 

“... That’s fine,” Felix says, unsure as to how he’s supposed to answer. Furthermore, he’s sure that he hasn’t made Chan’s life any easier — in fact, he thinks he’s made it _harder_ by persuading Chan to join this alliance with someone he doesn’t know, notwithstanding the pressure of a very possible and imminent attack from the Union.

“I think that’s him,” Minho says abruptly, eyes trained on the door to the car park. “I can hear his footsteps.” 

As if Minho could see through the walls, the footsteps echo throughout the hallway, and then the door opens — to reveal Chan, looking a little ruffled, hands tucked into his pockets and tie missing. He stands in the entrance of the doorway for a few moments, surveying them from a distance, and it seems to be that as his eyes land on Felix, the line of his shoulders relax a little and he starts striding towards them.

“Hyung,” Felix calls softly, but his voice echoes off the walls of the empty car park. It causes a small smile to grace over Chan’s mouth, and Felix ignores the burn of his ears as Minho and Jisung stare at him. “You came.” 

“As did you,” Chan replies, “and the vice president… and Han Jisung.”

“You know why I’m here,” Jisung says, stepping up boldly. He looks relaxed, but his stance is ready, prepared in the case a fight breaks out. “I won’t waste your time, Bang. I want to form an Alliance between Jangnan and Noye.”

“Why now?” Chan asks, voice quiet. “Why now is it that Jangnan wants to form an Alliance?” 

“The Union is coming after both of us,” Jisung says, sounding like he had expected the question. “There was no pressure last time, but now that Im Jinyoung has been taken down and we don’t know whose side the Guardian Rottweiler will take, we need to do _something_.” 

“And what will we get if we form an Alliance?”

“Better protection, more fighters. Everything that Jangnan High has will be yours, just as your fighters will help us. What do you say, Bang?” 

“If the Union attacks?” 

“Then it is war.” 

Chan looks at Jisung, eyes cold, steady.

Jisung returns the gaze, blazing, confident.

“Fine,” Chan says, the one word sealing their fates. “Noye and Jangnan will form an alliance.” 

“I look forward to working with you, Bang,” Jisung says, now grinning, something like wildfire in his smile. “I’ll send over my intel to work on a contract, who should I contact?” 

  
“I can do that,” Felix says, stepping in. “I can work on the contract with Jeongin from Jangnan. Minho-hyung has given me enough intel all this while about contracts, and if you need one I can help.”

Jisung almost smiles at that. “Is he Chan-ssi’s pet now?” He asks Minho quietly when Chan turns to Felix to ask about something. “He even called him hyung. I thought you said The Other God didn’t know many people?” 

“You know Felix,”Minho murmurs back, watching as Chan breaks into a soft smile when Felix laughs. “He always makes people melt around him. I doubt The Other God could defend himself against that.” Then he straightens up and swings his head around to glare at Jisung, suddenly remembering his righteous anger previously. 

“And you, Han Jisung!” Minho hisses, “How could you make me worry like _this_ ? What if you were ambushed, or your intel wasn’t right? And you came here _alone_? Han Jisung, I swear to god — ”

“I’m _fine_ ,” Jisung insists, grabbing Minho’s hands in his. “Look, Minho — I’m fine. I’m not hurt, and I was careful. I checked over the intel and I made sure there were exits to the car park. I know you won’t stop worrying but I promised you that I’d be careful.”

“You did,” Minho says, relenting a little, “but please don’t be so reckless next time. I… I don’t want a repeat of last winter, Jisung-ah.”

“Neither do I,” Jisung says, and he catches Chan’s eye then. “But it might be that there is no other choice.” 

Silence descends like the rapidly darkening night between the four of them. 

_There might be no choice if there is a war._

* * *

It has barely been a week since the tentative agreement of an Alliance — the contract had been signed on Thursday — but it seems that the rumours had spread, both fast and wide. Students of Jangnan and Noye were less wary around each other, and Felix had spotted some of the more notorious fighters between the schools ignoring each other as they passed, clearly mindful not to pick a fight. 

Somehow, the peace between the two schools only serves to make Felix uneasier.

With the news of their Alliance spreading so fast, he’s sure that the Union has heard of them — but what would the Union do? Right now, Felix knows that the Death Angel is caught up in some business dealings and so couldn’t spare all her attention to direct a full attack, but it sticks in the back of his head that nonetheless, there _would_ be some sort of altercation soon. 

He’s right. The next day, on Friday, Chan invites him to get some food. 

“As a thank you for helping with the contract, Pres,” Chan says, smiling, and Felix thinks his heart does a flip. 

They make their way after school to the edge of the residential district that is technically the territory of Dokga High, now under the Guardian Rottweiler’s hold. Chan insists that there’s a fried chicken stall near the markets that has the _best_ food, so Felix agrees, finding his enthusiasm adorable. 

And that was another thing Felix had to think about. That lately, as he talked to Chan more and more often, his heart would skip a few beats and rise into his throat; it wasn’t a feeling that was unfamiliar to him, but to have these feelings for _Chan_ ? Felix was nervous about that — falling for Chan would likely get him dragged into the world of school gangs, like Minho was when he and Jisung first met — and there’s the inkling feeling in his gut that he _would_ get involved with this world if Chan needed his help. 

He already has, with the contracts and seeking him out, but to be even more involved… He wonders what that would be like. 

Felix doesn’t need to wonder. When they finish their food, there is not even a moment for them to breathe. Students start to surround the fried chicken stall, wearing uniforms that Felix recognises as being from _Cheolsa._

“Not good,” Felix murmurs under his breath, trying to act nonchalant. “There are at least twenty of them. Do you think this is the Union making its move?”

“I don’t think so,” Chan says, still wiping his hands carefully. “If the Union set this up there would be ranked fighters here. None of the people here are people on the rankings, so it must be a scouting from Cheolsa itself.” 

Felix scowls. “Shin Ryujin again… but we’re in Dokga territory, aren’t they afraid?” 

“Dokga is in the Union,” Chan reminds him. “Cheolsa won’t be scared of Dokga if they’re both in the Union.”

Slowly, surely, the Cheolsa students start corralling them in like livestock, and the few possible exits Chan had been trying to figure out how to get to has been blocked off. For now, it looks like they have to face the Cheolsa students head on to create an escape route and run for their worth. Chan is calculating which exit would be the best route for them to leave by, when all of a sudden, Han Jisung strolls out from behind the stall, whistling. 

“Oh, hello!” Jisung says cheerfully. “What a nice day!”

Felix blinks. “What are you doing here?” 

“Oh, I came to pick up some chicken, but apparently someone came in to disturb the owner, so I helped clean up,” Jisung explains. “And it looks like we have some company today, no?” There’s a wild grin plastered over his face, and suddenly Felix remembers how Jisung acquired his shuttle patch nickname.

_The Fist of God. One punch is enough to make you see god._

But Felix is sure that even with Jisung helping them, they can’t take on twenty-plus fighters, especially not when they all attack at the same time. Casually, Jisung sidles over to them, hooking an arm over Felix's shoulder and bending down. It looks like he's peering at Felix's phone held loosely in his hand, but he's whispering something to them.

"Go north," Jisung murmurs, "and attack them there. I'll tank, Chan-ssi, please take the back. Felix, you stay in the middle and guide us where to go. We'll get caught up in fighting and we can't do that — we need to escape."

"Got it," Chan says immediately. "You go first, Jisung-ssi."

"Follow me," Jisung whispers to Felix.

Like they're just chatting normally, Jisung pulls Felix up and stays half a step ahead, cheerfully talking about something that happened to him today. With some amusement, Felix notes that the Cheolsa students look particularly disgruntled that none of them are paying them any ounce of attention. Perhaps this was Jisung's plan then, to undermine Cheolsa's confidence by not paying them the attention fighters usually demanded for.

They're getting closer to the first of the fighters now; Jisung and Chan exchange a glance.

"One," Chan breathes, eyes locked onto the space between him and one of the fighters.

"Two," Jisung whispers, adjusting his sling bag so it won't get in the way.

"Three!" The both of them shout in the same instance, and they charge towards the nearest fighters, swinging their fists with frightening accuracy.

Felix — has never been involved in a fight before. But now, as he stands in the centre of it, ducking out of the way of fighters and landing his own punches, there is something _thrilling_ about it. It's a feeling he can't quite help, the years and years of taekwondo he had practised for coming back to him and aiding him now as he does his best to defend himself. He doesn't have the same strength as Chan and Jisung do, but it's enough that he can both defend himself and guide them towards the part of the circle where the fighters are being thinned out.

Yet, before they can so much as try and make an escape for it, the other fighters come in and patch up the thinning area, and they all groan simultaneously.

"Cowards!" Jisung says, swearing at the top of his voice. "Fine! If you want a fight - I'll _give_ you a fight."

It is a few long minutes of them trying to brace against the attacks from all sides; even Chan and Jisung who are top ranked fighters, can't last that long against an unrelenting assault that severely outnumber them. By the time they take down half of the fighters, they are already tired and more than a little battered.

"Who sent you?" Chan asks, deadly intent in his voice. "Tell me before I make you tell me."

"What, you can't read where we're from?" One of the fighters says, and strips their shirt, throws it at him. "We're from — fuck!"

"Throw something at me again and you _will_ regret it," Chan says coldly, holding the student up in the air by their neck. He throws them face-first into the ground and steps on their back, looking up at the rest of them. "Anyone want to try that again?"

It looks like the other Cheolsa students are ready to taunt him again, but something — _someone_ — unexpected arrives. Perhaps his presence wasn't unexpected, but they had all been so caught up in the fight that they forgot _where_ exactly they were.

“Get the fuck away from Dokga territory!” Hwang Hyunjin barks, stepping on the back of one of the Cheolsa students who he had punched carelessly as he walked in. “Cheolsa High — if anyone one of you fuckers dare to even _look_ at Dokga students I’ll snap your necks!” His long blonde hair is gathered in a half-ponytail, and the headband he wears disguises his furrow as he looks over at Cheolsa, something like contempt in his eyes.

“Just cause _you_ took after Im Jinyoung,” One of the Cheolsa students spits, “doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want — ”

“Oh yeah?” Hwang Hyunjin asks, and his voice is now dangerously quiet. “Do you want to say that again to my face, you punk?” He steps up close to the student, leaning down and getting into their personal space, grinning casually. “I think you should learn how to respect those stronger than you.” And without a warning - his smile drops and his arm pulls back - he takes a step away and another hand settles on the student’s shoulder - and — 

He punches the student squarely in the face, leaving them staggering and falling onto the street. 

“Any other Cheolsa students want to speak up?” Hyunjin drawls.

_The Guardian Rottweiler,_ Felix recognises, _fiercely protective of his territory… but why has he asked only the Cheolsa students to leave?_

“You’re not leaving? You wanna let the Wolf have a go at you?” Hyunjin asks, and there’s a hint of amusement in his voice. Even like this, severely outnumbered — ten of the Cheolsa students who were still standing and just him, Chan, Jisung, and Felix — he is confident. 

A ripple of worry immediately sparks through the remaining students. 

Hyunjin arches an eyebrow. “So you’re not scared of me, but of the Wolf? Fine — it’s not like I like to get my hands dirty. The Wolf is already on his way here, do you wanna stick around here and get torn to pieces, punks?” 

“Let’s go,” One of the students says under their breath, and they all eye Hyunjin warily. 

“I’m not letting you go,” Hyunjin says, and he’s almost cheerful in his words. “You stepped into Dokga territory, you pay the consequences.” 

Before any of the Cheolsa students can so much as say anything, someone walks up from behind them, a shock of pink hair and hunched shoulders, walking gait relaxed. The person comes to stand beside Hyunjin, clapping a light hand on his shoulder and gazes at the Cheolsa students. 

“These the students that decided to mess with Dokga territory?” The pink-haired man asks, and his voice draws so low that it’s raspy. “This is the first time they’ve stepped in since Jinyoung-hyung left, isn’t it?” 

Hyunjin smiles at the Cheolsa students, syrupy and dangerous. “Take your kill, Wolf.” 

Without so much as another word, Hyunjin turns away from the Cheolsa students to look at them, taking in the state the three of them are. “Come with me,” He says brusquely, “you are injured.” 

Felix looks back at the pink-haired man nervously. “Um — can he handle all of them?” 

“Oh, Jaemin? He’ll be fine,” Hyunjin says, waving a hand. “He’s very strong, and his boyfriends are coming to back him up. Do you know Lee Jeno and Huang Renjun?” He sees the recognition flash across Felix’s face and allows a small smile to grace across his lips. “The Wild Trio will be fine, Noye Pres. Come with me, you’re all injured.” 

_Why,_ Felix wants to ask but doesn’t dare to, _why are you helping us? Are Dokga High not part of the Union?_

Instead, he follows Hyunjin into Dokga High, navigating through the unfamiliar hallways until they come to the infirmary. Hyunjin ushers them in and starts taking out a first aid kit, handing it to them and fishing his phone out at the same time. 

“I assume you know how to take care of your wounds,” Hyunjin says, eyes on whoever he is texting.

“Thank you,” Felix rushes to say, because neither Chan nor Jisung say anything, gazes fixed suspiciously on Hyunjin. He opens the first aid kit with shaky hands, bringing out bandages and gauze and disinfectant; he isn’t hurt badly at all, not with how Chan was protecting him, and his heart shakes a little as Chan takes disinfectant and cotton pads from him, wincing slightly as he presses it down onto his knuckles.

“What do you want, Hwang?” Jisung finally says through the thick silence. He had quickly bandaged his knuckles, gauze plastered to his cheek and arms. “Dokga High is part of the Union, are you waiting for the Union to show up here and deal with us?” 

Hyunjin shoves his phone roughly into his pocket at that, looking up sharply. “I want to make a deal with you, Bang, Han.” 

“Depends on what it is,” Chan says, voice level and calm but full of _warning._

It reminds Felix of when Chan and Jisung were coming to agreements with the Alliance, and he can’t help the way his heart goes into overdrive, anxious at the thought that there might be a showdown between some of the strongest fighters on the shuttle patch. But — Hyunjin says something that surprises all of them. 

“I want to join your Alliance,” Hyunjin says, each word measured and calm. 

All of them stiffen at that sentence in the same moment; it is the direct opposite of what Hyunjin looks like, and Felix can’t help but feel as if the tension in the air has thickened ten-fold. 

“You want to betray the Union?” Jisung asks, standing up. Not to fight; merely a warning. 

Hyunjin meets his gaze steadily. “Dokga has never been part of the Union,” Hyunjin says, and watches the surprise flicker through their eyes. “Well — let me put this in a different way. Dokga _under my rule_ has never been part of the Union.”

“Explain yourself,” Chan says, coming to stand up as well. 

“Jinyoung-hyung never wanted to join the Union, but he was blackmailed into doing it,” Hyunjin says. “The previous head of Jangnan, Han-ssi, was Im Jaebum. The Union threatened to hurt Im Jaebum if Jinyoung-hyung didn’t join the Union. And I am sure,” Hyunjin continues, eyes now sliding between Chan and Felix, and then settling onto Jisung, “that you understand why Jinyoung-hyung did so.” 

Felix can see Jisung tensing up at the implication of Hyunjin’s words, and he thinks of Minho’s words the other day. _Jisung nearly went after someone who hit me._

“So why do you want to join our Alliance?” 

“I have a tooth to pick with the Union,” Hyunjin says, and there’s an edge to his words now. “Jinyoung-hyung suffered a lot because of the Union — I can’t just let the Union forget about this. Dokga is already blacklisted because I refused to continue being part of the Union after I took over.” 

“But why _us_?” Chan stresses. “Dokga has enough people to continue defending itself, you have some of the best fighters out there — the Wolf alone can take on so many.” 

“Because I don’t want to keep _defending,_ Bang,” Hyunjin snaps. “I want to _destroy_ the Union, do you understand? The Union came in here and fucked up the one family I had come to have, do you know what that means to me?!” Hyunjin's eyes are bright with anger, and his chest is almost heaving with emotion, fists clenched tightly. 

“War,” Jisung supplies, voice quiet but hard at the same time. “This means war.” 

“Let Dokga join your Alliance,” Hyunjin says, meeting their eyes, proud and tall. “Dokga will fight with you, for whatever reason it is that you have against the Union. You will have me, and the Wild Trio, and all the fighters of Dokga High.” 

There is only a brief moment of contemplation, an understanding passing between Chan and Jisung as they look at each other for a short moment. 

“Fine,” Jisung says, stepping up and holding his hand out. “An agreement that Dokga High has joined the Alliance. My intel will contact yours with all the paperwork later.” 

“How official,” Hyunjin remarks, but he shakes Jisung’s hand firmly. “You have my word, Han, Bang. Dokga High will fight by your side now.” 

There still remains more questions — of how they’re going to band and work together, and when they’re going to launch an attack on the Union — or even if they won’t, and will just be preparing to defend. But all of this isn’t for today to discuss; today they have to recover from the ambush by the Cheolsa students and try to get the Alliance up and running before everything else.

Once they’re all patched up, Hyunjin takes them out of the school, meeting the Wild Trio along the way. 

“They weren’t much of a fight,” Jeno remarks. None of them look injured, but Huang Renjun has his eyes trained on them, almost calculating. 

“Renjun, calm down. We’ve formed an Alliance, I don’t want you to go and find Noye,” Hyunjin says, already aware. Chan’s eyes slide over to him.

“Hmm,” Renjun says, but moves his gaze away from them. “Sure. Jaemin was an idiot to pick a fight anyway. We’re going up to the infirmary because Jeno got hit in the back.” 

The Wild Trio leave them then, and Hyunjin guides them out of the building and out onto the front courtyard.

“I heard Noye has good fighters,” Hyunjin remarks casually as they walk out of the gates of Dokga. “Your Lee Minho — he bested Jaemin in a fight the other day, did you know that?” 

“ _What_?” Jisung says sharply, turning around at what Hyunjin says. “Is that what Huang Renjun was talking about?” 

“Your Lee Minho won in a friendly spar with Jaemin,” Hyunjin repeats. “Granted, they both agreed not to draw blood, but it was a good fight nonetheless. The Fairy was quite cross with your Lee Minho, to come to think of it.” 

“Tell Huang Renjun not to think about it,” Jisung grits out. 

Hyunjin grins, amused. “No guarantee, Han. The Wild Trio are quite protective of each other. The masses also have a new nickname for your pet now, Han.” 

“Minho isn’t my _pet,_ ” Jisung says tersely, but Felix can see the red creeping up his neck. “You might want to shut up, Hwang.” 

“Oh, but I think you’d like to hear it,” Hyunjin says, almost teasing. “The pet of the Fist of God has become Rose Fists. He hits in a way that makes everything hurt later. The shuttle patch ranking is acknowledging him, Han — so consider this fair warning.” 

For all that Hyunjin was being a little shit, he was also helping them out. If Minho was being acknowledged… there would be people coming after him, and with that, people coming after _Noye._ Felix presses his lips together, thinking of how Minho had come to him crying all those months ago, the first time when Han Jisung had been severely injured and was in the hospital. 

_I want to protect him too,_ Minho had choked out in the empty classroom that autumn. _I don’t care if my life becomes dangerous — I’m going to learn how to protect him._

Felix could only understand Minho’s need to protect Jisung a little then — but now, as he walks beside Chan who looks weighed down with the burden of protecting Noye, he thinks he’s beginning to understand what Minho had been feeling like. 

_I want to learn how to protect Chan too._

(“you got into a fight again.” the words are spoken plainly, in a tone that is careful and measured; jisung has heard this exact tone before. it never fails to make his heart squeeze, painful. 

“chan-ssi and felix got ambushed near dokga. i had to help them — i’m sorry i didn’t text you.”

“at least you aren’t too badly injured,” minho says, and he goes to take the first aid kit in his cupboard that always needs to be stocked up. he is unusually silent, and jisung can tell something is weighing on his mind, something that for weeks and weeks he has been waiting for minho to say. 

he doesn’t need to wait any longer. minho is standing in front of him, lips parted and holding the first aid kit, but as he raises the first disinfectant-soaked pad to jisung’s cheek, his hand shakes — and he drops it. next, the first aid kit goes clattering to the floor, contents rattling inside the box, and jisung looks at minho, alarmed. 

before he can say anything, minho’s knees shake, and they give way. instinctively, jisung reaches out to catch minho, and they both go down onto the floor, legs messily crumpled underneath themselves. jisung doesn’t need to ask anything.

“don’t leave me,” minho whispers, and his voice cracks. “please don’t leave me.” 

they’re both slumped on the floor, jisung more battered than minho, the dark grey of noye against the light blue of jangnan. the first aid kit is abandoned to the side, and even when his hands are grazed and bruised, jisung reaches out, pulls minho in close, _closer._

“i will never leave you,” jisung says, voice quiet but so fiercely that minho _has_ to believe him.

jisung feels more than hears what minho’s next words are, said into his shoulder that is slowly getting a little damp. 

“i’m scared. i’m worried - that one day i’ll try to text you and you’ll never reply. or that i’ll have to find you in the hospital again.” minho’s hands clutch the back of his shirt, and instantly they both remember what happened last winter, when jisung had gotten into the worst fight of his life. “or that you won’t wake up,” minho says, voice choked up and small and _terrified._

“i’m sorry,” jisung murmurs, and holds minho closer to him. “i’m sorry, i never mean to make you worry so much.” 

“i _love_ you,” minho says, now bringing his face away from jisung’s shoulder and looking up, almost loud in his declaration. “i love you,” he repeats, softer, “of course i’ll worry. that’s never your fault.”

jisung takes his time then, brushes minho’s tangerine-coloured fringe out of his eyes, wipes the wetness of his cheeks, thumbs over where his lips are chapped from biting at it. “i love you too,” he returns, equally as gentle. “i can’t promise you a lot, i can’t promise that i won’t get into fights or that i’ll be safe — but i promise that i’ll return to you, always.”

“and i promise that i will be by your side when you fight,” minho says, brings jisung’s palm closer, kisses it. “i can’t promise you i’ll stop worrying, or that i won’t be mad when you start fighting, or that i won’t be sad when you get hurt, but i will promise you everything i can.”

it is easy and natural, then, for jisung to bring his hand to cup the back of minho’s neck and pull him in for a kiss. soft, sweet, like their promises; a press of their lips against each other and jisung can feel minho melt against him. 

and jisung desperately wants to protect this one piece of delicate sweetness that he has. his life that has been sweat and blood and _tears_ is made better by minho — his minho that had found him injured against the back wall of the pc cafe two years ago and had never left his side since. his minho that had learned how to fight despite the fact that it would be a blight on his future. his minho that had become strong and now stood by his side, protecting him just as much. 

he has to. he _must_ protect this love, even if it is with his life. 

“when everything is over,” jisung whispers, “when we no longer need to fight as much as we do — i will take you somewhere quiet. somewhere lovely, with trees and sun and flowers. you won’t need to worry about anything, ever.” 

“what a dream,” minho returns, and his eyelashes flutter in increments against the highs of his cheeks. “trees and sun and flowers and _you._ if we fight hard enough now we can rest later.” 

they smile. it is too soft and too sweet for the world they live in, and their love in this moment is too fragile to afford them any movement. 

for now, they rest.)

* * *

[ _chan-hyung_ ]

[ _23:13_ ] hi hyung

[ _23:13_ ] i need to meet you tomorrow

[ _23:14_ ] felix?

[ _23:14_ ] what's wrong?

[ _23:14_ ] garue high just contacted me

[ _23:14_ ] kim seungmin-ssi, the vice-pres and intel for garue high

[ _23:14_ ] he said garue high wants to join the alliance

[ _23:15_ ] i said they would need to talk to you as well

[ _23:13_ ] but i don't know...

[ _23:17_ ] garue high wants to join

[ _23:17_ ] ???

[ _23:17_ ] ask jisung-ssi to come along with his own intel

[ _23:18_ ] and hyunjin-ssi

[ _23:19_ ] got it

[ _23:34_ ] tomorrow, in the empty forest behind the public gardens

[ _23:34_ ] at noon

[ _23:35_ ] thank you

[ _23:35_ ] sleep well felix

[ _23:35_ ] tomorrow will be a long day

The thing is that Felix _cannot_ sleep. He is so worried about what's going to happen tomorrow; the Alliance had never met outside of school, and now they're going to have to meet with the head of Garue High on a Saturday in the empty forest. He _knows_ for a fact that the empty forests are where many fights often take place, and that Garue said to meet there... he will have to prepare an escape route.

These thoughts take up most of his mind throughout his restless night, and by the time morning comes, he's filled with both exhaustion and dread. He can't be bothered to dress up, but he settles on clothes that are easy to fight and run in, just in case anything happens.

The autumn is settling in, so he tugs on a white shirt and pulls on a grey hoodie after that, ripped in several places after years of wear. He selects a random pair of jeans and jams a black beanie on his head on hide his messy hair. He had just gotten it bleached to platinum recently, and while he had been thinking of putting some colour in it, the business with the Union had taken over his other priorities.

Quickly, he fixes himself a breakfast before heading out. Minho had asked him and Jeongin to meet in a café before the meeting with Garue High, and Felix is expecting him to come up with an escape plan. He just isn't expecting to see _Huang Renjun_ there as well.

"Renjun-ssi?" Felix asks uncertainly as he steps closer to the table where he and Minho are sat at.

"Felix-ssi," Renjun greets, and when he smiles this time, there is no malice. "I'm sorry if we got off on the wrong foot last time. I've already apologised to Minho-ssi."

"Our boyfriends are idiots," Minho says, a fond sigh just barely suppressed. "Come, come and sit, Pres. This is Huang Renjun, the president and intel of Nokga High. I'm sure you've met him before." Today, his bright tangerine hair has been pushed back with a black headband, and while he's wearing shorts again, they're loose basketball shorts.

"It's nice to meet you," Felix greets. "What are we doing here? Where's Jeongin?"

"I'm right here," Jeongin chimes in from behind them, dark grey hood pulled up to hide his ruffled hair. His silver chain necklace glints bright against his hoodie as he settles down to sit beside Felix. "What's going on?"

"I think we all need to know that we need an escape plan in case Garue is actually ambushing us," Minho starts, "but I would also like for us to compile all the information we know about Garue High here. We can figure out their fighting style this way."

"Garue High is close to Jangnan," Jeongin says, "I can go first. The intel is Seungmin-hy — Kim Seungmin, but we all know that. I heard from multiple sources that Garue fights tactically. They don't prolong the battle if they can — they go for one-hits that will knockout the opponent."

"Which is where the nickname for Seo Changbin came from," Renjun says, "the One-Hit God. If it's an opponent they can't finish right away, they dodge and tire out the opponent until they're clumsy and off-guard, then go in for the finishing attack. Jeno once fought Mark-hyung from Garue and lost spectacularly. It was quite funny."

"Garue's best asset is their intelligence," Jeongin continues. "Kim Seungmin is particularly good at gathering information, and since Garue High prioritises studying, all the students are good at intel. It helps the small fighting population become so strong."

"It also helps that Garue is so far away from Hwanggeum," Minho adds. "There's a huge residential district between Garue and Hwanggeum. The Union never really knows what Garue is doing — we don't even know if Garue is part of the Union or not."

"Really?" Felix asks, surprised. "I thought Garue was always part of the Union?"

"Apparently their statue was never confirmed," Renjun replies. "The Union simply assumed, because when they requested Garue to join, Seo Changbin only shrugged and walked away... perhaps that's something you can do to the Death Angel when you're in the top ranks of the shuttle patch."

"That's such a bold move," Jeongin says admiringly.

"You say that like Jisung didn't tell the Death Angel to fuck off," Minho says, laughing.

"Are you part of Jangnan or Noye?" Felix inquires, amusement written in his voice.

Minho grins at him, lobbing a napkin in his direction. "Noye all the way, of course. Oh — don't tell Jisung that, Jeongin. He will _never_ shut up about it if he knew."

The conversation is sustained during the whole walk to the public gardens, and when they arrive at the entrance to the barren forest behind the gardens, they fall silent. Technically, no one was supposed to enter the forest, but while a locked gate and sign might deter the general public, it did nothing for them.

They haul each other over the gate, and make their way into the forest with Felix guiding them where to go, as Chan had sent him their exact location. The walk is pleasant, if a little bit chilly; despite everything, Felix can't help the worry that rises in his chest. He _knows_ that they outnumber Garue and that they have an escape plan, but _something_ always seemed to strike last minute. Felix hopes that this time, everything goes well.

As expected, Chan, Jisung, and Hyunjin are already there, waiting. They make an imposing trio, threatening auras somehow doubled by the fact that they're meeting in the empty forest and not a bustling area of the city.

"You're here!" Jisung says, brightening when he sees them making their way over. "Hey, you guys!"

"We're still early for Garue to arrive, right?" Chan asks as Felix comes to stand beside him.

"We have another ten minutes," Felix admits, "but it's better than being late. At least we know they won't have the opportunity to prepare for an ambush."

"That's true. Did you sleep well?" Chan says, abruptly changing the topic. "You texted me quite late last night, I know you sleep earlier than that."

"Oh! You noticed — well, I was up playing games since it was Friday night, and Kim Seungmin happened to text me. I didn't sleep very well, nerves and all that, you know?"

"Hmm," Chan says, and looks at him. Felix doesn't quite like the slight clouded look that comes into Chan's eyes then, but he doesn't get to say anything else.

Seo Changbin and Kim Seungmin are approaching them.

Even from this distance, Felix can see Seo Changbin's dusty blue hair, the only speck of colour against his body that is decked out in black and white. Kim Seungmin is wearing a grey shirt and light jeans, like Jeongin - Felix wonders for a brief moment if they know each other remembering Jeongin's slip-up of Kim Seungmin's honorifics before. His purple hair is long and looks like it has been pinned down in waves.

"Thank you for meeting us here at this short notice," Kim Seungmin says once they're in hearing range. "I apologise for the short notice, I hope we have not inconvenienced you too much."

"Still so polite," Renjun sighs. "I remember you from Union days, Seungmin-ssi. You haven't changed one bit, apart from your hair... and perhaps your relationships."

Seungmin smiles at him, pleasant and sweet, but there is something darker lurking in the corners of his mouth. "Both you and I got into relationships at similar times, Renjun-ssi. It is lovely to see you again. I hope we can continue to meet each other like this."

"We came here to ask to join your Alliance," Seo Changbin says directly, not one to beat around the bush. "We've never been an official part of the Union, and they're fucking us over. We have bones to pick with the Union."

"They caused harm to the non-fighting populations of our students," Seungmin continues, sounding perfectly civil, but they all flinch internally from the look in his eyes. " _No one_ touches the students of Garue, especially those that cannot defend themselves."

"So we are asking to join your Alliance," Changbin says, looking at them without a waver in his voice. "Garue promises to give the Alliance all of our manpower and intel and loyalty in return for the same from the rest of the Alliance."

"Why should we trust you?" Jisung asks, surveying Changbin carefully. "You never were loyal to the Union, how can we be sure you won't betray us as well?"

"Garue never signed the contract with the Union," Seungmin says, stepping in. "The Union never prioritised us because we didn't like to fight as much. But this time, when we join the Alliance, we will sign the contract and pledge our loyalty. From then on, I suppose you must trust us — we all have our own reasons for joining the Alliance, but Garue will fight for you."

"What do you think?" Chan murmurs, turning to Felix. Similarly, all the other heads have turned to their own intels, and a discussion has arisen.

"I think Garue is being sincere," Minho answers. "They have no reason not to. We accepted Hwang Hyunjin who wanted revenge for Im Jinyoung. I don't see why we can't accept Garue that wants to protect their students."

"The contract binds Garue to us, and if they betray us the underground courts will settle it," Felix adds. "Garue sounds like they're willing to fight for us."

"I agree," Chan says without much further discussion. Felix supposes he had wanted to accept Garue in the first place.

"I agree too," Jisung says, turning away from Jeongin. He has a smile curled across his lips, like he had just found out a secret.

Hyunjin shrugs. "I agree too. Nothing against Garue, you guys are cool. Bested Jeno too, which I think is hilarious."

"Wonderful!" Seungmin says, clapping his hands together. "I'll come over to Noye on Monday with Changbin-hyung to sign the contract, and then everything will be done."

"Thank you, we look forward to working with you," Changbin says. "If you need help, Garue will answer to you."

Just like that, the meeting concludes. There is no clash of heads and no throwing of punches; Felix thinks that maybe this is just how Garue prefers to solve their problems. It certainly is a lot less messy, and already, he can feel that Seo Changbin and Kim Seungmin are good people.

It is especially amusing when Jeongin calls out for Seungmin, and they walk off together.

"What...?" Minho says, echoing the question in most of their minds.

"Oh, you didn't know?" Renjun says amusedly. "They're together. Quite funny, if you ask me." Then he looks over at where Changbin has started to engage Hyunjin in conversation and sighs.

"Excuse me?" Minho asks in an undertone, sounding scandalised. "Hwang — and Seo?!"

"Haven't you heard that Seo has liked Hwang for a while now? What kind of intel are you?" Renjun returns. Then they put their heads together and start discussing in rapid tones about what they think of this, and Felix has to laugh.

He watches with a more relieved heart as everyone starts to relax and chat, and he hopes that soon, everything will be more settled.

(he does not see chan gazing at the back of his head, nor does he see how chan's eyes cloud over once again, as if he is unsure of what he is doing or thinking about. he doesn't see how chan's hand goes to hold his but shies away, or how chan almost yells when he trips over a broken tree branch —

he doesn't see all of this. his back is turned away.)

  
  


* * *

It has just been over two weeks since Garue joined their Alliance. The Union must be getting antsy about it, because more and more Cheolsa and Hwanggeum students were lurking and spying on them, with fights breaking out in various areas around the city.

Felix had heard of Minho complaining when Jisung turned up on his doorstep with injuries and bruises. _He always says it’s nothing and brushes it off,_ Minho had groaned, _but the injuries aren’t nothing! I swear he’s a magnet for trouble._

And now, it starts to feel like he knows what Minho is going through.

It happens on one Sunday afternoon when Chan shows up on his doorstep — bruised and slightly bloody. He doesn’t even begin to ask why Chan knows where he lives, and he doesn’t like the look in Chan’s eyes when he tugs Chan up into his apartment. There is something clouded in his eyes, like worry and fear — but there is also determination. Felix steels himself for whatever Chan will say; he just doesn’t expect Chan to come out with his words so fast.

“You shouldn’t get involved from here on,” Chan says, not moving from the doorway of the bathroom where Felix had left him. Felix pauses from getting out the first aid kit, the thumping of his heart way too fast and skipping way too often for his comfort.

“Wh - what do you mean?” Felix asks, standing up with the first aid kit and pulling Chan through the doorway to sit on his bed. His hands shake as he opens the first aid kit, adrenaline and worry rushing through his veins in equal measure.

“It’s too dangerous,” Chan begins, but then is shut off by Felix. 

“I know how dangerous it is, don’t try that,” Felix clips out. 

“It’s better for you to not get involved.” 

“As I said, I _know_ what I’m doing.”

“You should leave, nothing is safe. It’s not going to be easy and it’ll be dangerous, so you should —” 

“I am not leaving you,” Felix says, trying to keep his voice steady. “I know it hasn’t been long, _but I am not leaving you_!” He looks up at Chan once again when he has finished binding the graze on Chan’s arm, but his vision is already clouded with frustrated tears. 

“None of us are leaving you, hyung,” Felix tries again, angrily dashing at the tears starting to run down his cheeks. “When you need help, we’ll be here. For however long this is, or whatever this is — we will be _together_.”

There is a long silence before Chan says anything. 

“I can’t,” Chan whispers, voice half-torn, half-choked. “You - I’m not… clean. My hands… I don’t want to get you involved - you’re still young, you can have a better future if you don’t get involved with these gangs —” 

“Chan,” Felix cries, interrupting him and feeling like his heart is about to give way with all his emotions, “Chan, _I don’t care._ I was already involved with these things before knowing you.” 

“You’ll have a better future without me,” Chan continues to insist, now looking just as emotional as Felix, hands bandaged and bruised but clenched tightly. “What you’ve been involved with so far — you haven’t _fought._ You’re not on the rankings, people don’t know you other than being Pres! You can still go back, Felix, you can return to normal life.” 

Felix desperately wants to loosen the line of his shoulders, the furrow of his brows, the pinch of his mouth. He wants to say something - _I don’t want normal life if I can’t have you_ \- shake Chan by the shoulders - _I already know how to fight, I want to protect you_ \- take Chan into his arms - _I want to stand by your side and let me help you as much as you have helped me._

“My hands are not clean,” Chan says, keeps going, but now his voice has taken on a shaky quality, like he’s close to tears. “And - you - you have _everything_ in front of you to go. I can’t promise you anything but fights and blood and I won’t know what the future brings. I can’t - I can’t do that to you.” 

Another silence descends between them. Chan looks down; Felix has a thousand words lodged in his throat. 

Slowly, surely, Felix reaches out, takes Chan’s hands in his. His own hands that are still smooth brush against the bandages and calluses, years and years of fighting imprinted into Chan’s hands. Gently, reverently, Felix brings Chan’s hands up to his mouth. He presses his mouth against the bandaged knuckles, the back of the hand where there is no bruise. Quietly, _lovingly,_ he speaks against the bandages, eyes closed. 

“These hands are yours. They are _yours._ And for me, I will always love your hands, whether they are bloodied or whether they are clean.” Felix presses another kiss into Chan’s hands again, and he looks up again, eyes opening. His vision is once again blurry with tears, but through this glossy film he can see that tears slide down Chan’s cheeks as well.

This time, the silence is not uneasy. 

They hold each other’s hands, sitting on Felix’s small single bed; their torsos are angled to each other, knees touching. To say anything feels like a bit much in this one moment, so Chan untangles a hand from Felix’s, reaches up to gently brush away the tears. Something swells in Felix’s heart. Here is the man that is known for being merciless, rough; here is the man with the fists of steel, body made hard from the streets; here is the man who has never found home in a place but is finding it in people.

Here is the man whose hands have never been softer, never been more tender, never been more loving, as it has been when he wipes the tears off the face of a lover.

“Then if you know that my hands are not clean,” Chan whispers, hand cupped against Felix’s cheek, “will you let these hands take you home when needed? That you will let these hands help you even when they are bloodied?” 

“Even when your hands are not clean,” Felix says, voice barely a breath, “you are the home I go back to.” His hand reaches up as well, cradles the back of Chan’s hand. 

Felix thinks he sees Chan smile. He isn’t too sure though, because his eyes cloud over with relieved tears; and then his eyes close when Chan’s does; and then warmth washes over him, blanketing him in safety. 

_Yes,_ Felix thinks, still warm, _this is what Chan feels like. Safety. Warmth. Home._

* * *

(when the union and the alliance eventually clash, it is chan who steps up first. as always, his posture is straight, his gait confident; but there is something more assured about him as he walks, like he knows that there are people standing beside him, fighting when he fights. 

“the other god comes running back,” the death angel says, and her smile is pretty, dangerous. 

"i'm through with running away," chan says. loud. bold. "i've found someone i want to protect. i’ve found people i want to protect. and you’re endangering them.” 

the death angel nods her head, acquiesces. “i suppose you are right.”

“then this ends here, today.” 

“if you insist, then we shall.” 

“hwang yeji.”

“bang chan.” 

they exchange a faint smile. 

and the first punches are thrown.)

**Author's Note:**

> thank you to the mods of the skzmvfest for organising this fest!! ive had a lot of fun writing this au and i have vague pre/sequels planned out :DD 
> 
> my [Tumblr](https://yeongwonlino.tumblr.com/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/yeongwonlino/)!! i hope everyone has a good day!!!!


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